


A Good Sense of Timing

by WolfWarden



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms
Genre: Gen, I have typed bokoblins so many times now it has lost all meaning, Inspired by Fanart, LU Artist Appreciation 2020, OC is from the fanart, Original Character(s), Warriors (Linked Universe) - Freeform, has a brief appearance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-25
Updated: 2020-11-25
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:55:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,712
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27705884
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WolfWarden/pseuds/WolfWarden
Summary: Catching up to Wild was easy enough when tracking him with the abilities of a wolf. Wild wasn’t surprised when Twilight appeared at his side on the road. He simply laughed at him and asked if Twilight was afraid to miss out on the fun. Twilight, unable to speak in wolf form, gave Wild a scathing glare. The one he reserved for such occasions when Wild was being particularly reckless for no good reason.“It’s just some bokos, Twi. This doesn’t count as reckless if I can take them out in my sleep.”Hm. Seems the disapproving glare needs more work.
Relationships: Twilight & Wild (Linked Universe)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 78





	A Good Sense of Timing

**Author's Note:**

> This is a gift for the talented Krust for LU Artist Appreciation 2020! A link to Krust's animation that inspired this fic is in the end notes.

Twilight had already known that Wild was an explorer. To Wild, everything was a puzzle to solve, be it discovering a new recipe or how to traverse whatever hazardous terrain they came across. Wild approached it all with gusto and an irreverence for how many times it would take him to persevere. That perseverance (or “stubbornness” as Legend would describe it) was a trait that all the heroes shared to some degree. But with Wild… well, Twilight considered Wild’s brand of perseverance to be of the more chaotic variety. There was no careful methodology with the Hero of the Wild. Anything and everything was thrown full force at the problem until something miraculously would just work. Twilight would be left fuming at the sheer stupidity of it all. Yes, he was usually happy with the results of Wild’s efforts. He just wished the problem-solving process involved fewer bombs and a greater sense of self-preservation. 

But what Twilight had not known about Wild was his disinterest in being a leader. He wasn’t like Warriors or Time who naturally fell into that role in their group. Wild was content to put his head down and, well, not “follow orders” exactly, but get the job done in his own way. Twilight had never heard Wild complain about his role either. On his own, he was dedicated to pursuing his own goals; in their group, he was supportive and receptive to someone else’s direction.

Which was why it was so strange to see him at work in his own Hyrule. Everyone seemed to know him, but not really know who he was. The people flocked to Wild, trusting him with their problems and content in the knowledge that if this kid said he would help out, the job would get done. And to them, that’s all Wild seemed to be: some kid who was willing to try anything. Certainly not the hero of their era. Wild didn’t seem interested in the recognition, so the rest of the Links did their best not to mention it, despite some of them holding differing opinions on the matter. When people needed help, Wild would just quietly slip off and do it, seemingly forgetting that he was now part of a team of nine heroes. 

_So really,_ thought Twilight, chasing after Wild so he wouldn’t try to take out an entire encampment of bokoblins on his own, _I shouldn’t be surprised at all._

Earlier that day they had entered a town (”Tarry Town” Wild had called it), bought rooms at the inn for the night, and spent the afternoon resting from a long week on the road. Twilight had overheard a Rito merchant mention to Wild that a bokoblin encampment and been spotted nearby and travelers to the town were being harassed on the road at night. It wasn’t hard to guess what Wild would be planning next. In fact, Twilight barely had time to pass by Warriors and hastily tell him the direction he and Wild would be going. He had cut off Warriors’ questions with a quick “ _don’t worry about us unless we’re not back by midnight_.”

Warriors had given him a long calculating look. The captain looked like he wanted to argue but ultimately just nodded his head tersely. Twilight had already spun on his heel and had taken a step away when he heard Warriors curse under his breath then call out, “An hour after sundown! That’s when I’m coming after you idiots.”

Twilight had just smirked and kept running. _They call Sky a mother Cucco but really, Warriors is just as bad. He just hides it better._

Catching up to Wild was easy enough when tracking him with the abilities of a wolf. Wild wasn’t surprised when Twilight appeared at his side on the road. He simply laughed at him and asked if Twilight was afraid to miss out on the fun. Twilight, unable to speak in wolf form, gave Wild a scathing glare. The one he reserved for such occasions when Wild was being particularly reckless for no good reason.

“It’s just some bokos, Twi. This doesn’t count as reckless if I can take them out in my sleep.”

_Hm. Seems the disapproving glare needs more work._

To Wild’s credit, the encampment of bokoblins seemed to be an easy target. The sun was low in the sky as they swooped in and took out the three red bokoblin sentries with ease. The only problem? The rest of the encampment was empty.

Wild quickly searched the skull-like cave that usually housed the stronger bokoblins while Twilight tried to find the scent of any other enemies. _Ugh. The stink of bokos is so strong I can’t pick out just one individual trail._

Wild rejoined him. “I don’t like this. Three reds shouldn’t be enough to cause the kind of trouble Fyson was telling me about. Let’s t-”

A scream rang out. Followed by the angry squeals of bokoblins.

Wild met Twilight’s eye. “Welp. Found ‘em.” Both Hylian and wolf dashed toward the noise.

\- - -

Night was not a companion for safe travels. That was something Jasmine’s older brother liked to remind her of. Well, day didn’t necessarily make for safe travels either, but it was _supposed_ to be getting better. Word had gotten around to her hometown of Hateno that the monster attacks had been decreasing in the world. Some said that the legendary hero had returned to save them. Or perhaps it was just someone handy with a sword clearing the monsters out faster than the blood moon could bring them back? Well, Jasmine had always said she was only waiting for a sign that it was time to strike out on her own. A sign that now was the chance to explore the world and have an adventure! The disappearance of murderous monsters might as well be it. Rhodes was not happy about that, but he’d always been very protective of his “baby sister.” Night watchmen tended to be the superstitious sort anyway.

Jasmine quickened her pace on the dusty path, determined NOT to run because she wasn’t a child, thank you. Twenty-one years old was far overdue, in her opinion, for seeking out some excitement. Just because the light was fading fast and she hadn’t caught sight of the next town did not mean she would be afraid. The man at the stables had given her clear directions to Tarry Town. It _should_ be here. Everything was fine. She was fine. Nobody was worried. 

The sky glowed a bloody red as the sun sat on the horizon and cast long shadows across the path. Her hands tightened into fists at her sides. _It’s not a blood moon,_ she told herself. _Those haven’t shown up in months now. It’s just the stupid sunset. Stop freaking out about nothing._ Jasmine tugged her coat higher up on her neck and flicked her dark hair back behind her shoulder. She forced herself to walk at a steady gait and to breathe deeply and evenly. She would fake calm until she _was_ calm. Her brother’s words echoed again in her mind. “Night was not a companion for safe travels.” In the few weeks she had been traveling, Jasmine had always adhered to that advice by finding a village or stable to pass the night in. Until tonight. A chill skittered across her skin. _Just get to the top of this next hill and see if you can spot the town. Everything is fine._

A shrill scream rang out in the night. It sounded Hylian. 

_Everything is NOT FINE._ Jasmine jolted to a stop, her insides frantically squirming in her belly.

Another scream immediately followed. It sounded decidedly not human.

The adrenaline surging through her veins told her to _run run run_ but her body was frozen. The Hylian voice sounded again and this time Jasmine could make out words begging for help. That snapped her out of her frozen state. Someone was begging for help. She was only a single traveler on the road, but she wasn’t going to turn away from someone who needed help. She dashed up the final incline of the hill toward the noises. A small cart came into view on the side of the road just in front of her. It was turned on its side and the contents were spilled out over the grass. Once past it, the road dipped back down and she could just make out figures a little way down the hill. Five hulking bokoblins ran through the darkening shadows, whooping and shrieking as they swung large wooden bats and skull-tipped spears over their heads. Their prey was a woman, crying and stumbling as she limped away from them as fast as she could. 

Jasmine dropped to a crouch in the tall grass and scuttled closer. _What can I do? Oh, Hylia, give me strength._ There had to be some way to help this poor woman without becoming a victim herself. She noted that one of the creatures was slower than the others, dragging something large behind him in the grass. A final beam of weak sunlight filtered through the trees and briefly illuminated the object. Jasmine gasped. It was a man, unconscious and leaving a thin trail of blood in the crushed grass. This was bad. She needed to go get help but she didn’t know how far away help was. These people needed some of those warriors who were clearing out monsters! Not a girl from Hateno who knew just enough to stay out of trouble. 

The woman tripped and hit the ground hard. She gasped in pain and rolled over to stare up at the creatures advancing on her. “How dare you!” she shouted. 

Jasmine could hear the waver of fear in the woman’s voice. Warrior or not, this woman needed help. Jasmine swallowed down her fear and looked about for a weapon. 

The woman spoke again. “You think you can do what you like to us, but others will come!” Her eyes turned toward the man who was dragged along, his leg bleeding around the bokoblin’s vicious grip. “You can take the ones I love away from me, but someone will come and _end you_.” 

The lead bokoblin finally reached the woman and smiled widely, raising his club high.

Jasmine watched in horror. She was too far away, no weapon in hand.

The woman spat at the monster’s feet. “…And no moon will rise to bring you back again.”

The club began to fall, Jasmine jumped to her feet with a shout, and an arrow hissed through the air and sunk into the lead bokoblin’s head with a dull _thump_. The monster teetered back then slumped to the ground as a man burst through the nearby trees. He had a second arrow ready to fire from his bow as he ran full tilt toward the remaining creatures, long blond hair streaming out behind him. His movements were quick and sure as he fired arrow after arrow at the bokoblins who had recovered their senses enough to raise their shields. The creature dragging the unconscious man had dropped him, focusing fully on the sudden attacker.

Jasmine rushed forward, grateful for the deepening darkness now. She dropped down beside the limp body, rolling him over and checking for a pulse. There was a fair bit of bruising around his temple and a great deal of blood coming from his leg, but he was breathing. There was a rustling beside her as the woman crawled toward them. Jasmine could see tear tracks on her face. Up close, Jasmine realized with a shock that the woman didn’t look that much older than she was.

“Is he…?” The woman choked out.

“He’s breathing,” Jasmine said. “It’ll be okay. I won’t leave you alone.”

“Please. My boy. Did you see him?”

“Who?”

The woman was trembling. She clutched at the man on the ground but turned her face back toward the road. “My son. Did they find him? We tried to lead them away…”

Jasmine followed the woman’s gaze. Back up the hill to the overturned cart. _Was there a kid hiding up there? I didn’t see anything…. Maybe he ran into the woods?_ It was hard to make out anything beyond silhouettes. The sun had finally abandoned them.

“Please…” the woman sobbed. “I-”

Jasmine held up a hand to stop her. “I’ll find him.” The sound of bokoblins squealing in rage echoed in the night. Their mysterious savior was keeping them occupied. She sucked in one deep breath to steady her nerves, then leaped to her feet and ran. _They won’t notice me,_ she tried to reassure herself as her heartbeat thudded much too loudly in her ears. _The bokos are busy fighting._ She kept her eyes on the outline of the overturned cart. Everything around it was too still. It was an unsettling contrast to the sound of battle and the bloody scene she had just left behind. 

Finally, she made it to the cart. She dashed around to the crates and baskets strewn over the ground, her boots sliding in the mud in her haste. There was no sign of a small child tucked away among the belongings. _Should I check the woods?_ She turned to scan the nearby trees and had to stifle a scream.

A hulking bokoblin stood a few paces away, staring right at her. This one was different than the others. Black and white streaks decorated its skin and three horns jutted out of its head. It cocked its head at her and grinned, a cruel intelligence in its glowing red eyes. She was close enough that she could see its jagged, yellow fingernails wrapped around a bone-spiked club. 

Jasmine’s thoughts were caught in a whirl of panic. What would her brother do? Rhodes would tell her to run. Run now. _But the boy,_ her mind whispered back. _I can’t leave a child here. I have to find him._

The black bokoblin took a step toward her. She took a step back. Her eyes flickered around looking for anything to help. A weapon to defend herself? A clue to where the boy had gone? _Have to run. Have to stay. Oh, Hylia…_

A fierce growl rumbled from the woods as an enormous black wolf stalked up to the pair of them. It had a few odd gray markings around its face, but Jasmine was more focused on the blood dripping from its teeth and staining the fur of its chest and paws. The wolf, the bokoblin, and the Hylian all stared at each other, standing equally distanced apart. They paused for a tense moment waiting to see who would move first. 

The wolf’s growl abruptly stopped as a basket of what appeared to be food tipped over into the grass. A bundle of cloth rolled to a stop at the foot of the wolf, bumping into the silver manacle encasing one of its front paws. The cloth jerked and twitched before a whimper drifted out from the bundle and a tiny fragile hand reached out into the cold night.

Jasmine’s heart stopped. _A baby. She hid her **baby** from the monsters. _

A baby that was now lying two steps away from an angry bokoblin and at the very feet of a vicious blood-stained wolf. There was no chance it would survive.

 ** _No._**

She didn’t give herself another second to think. Jasmine dove forward, snatching the baby off the ground and ran as if the monster of Hyrule Castle himself were at her heels. She expected to at least feel the jaws of the wolf closing around her (she had brushed _right up against it!_ ) but nothing happened. The sounds of snarling and angry squeals blended behind her as she continued at her frantic pace. 

The minutes dragged by as she sped over the dark landscape. The only things she was aware of were her labored breathing and the tiny squirming bundle pressed securely against her chest. Before long her legs were burning and the adrenaline was fading. She slowed and tried to listen for sounds of pursuit. Nothing seemed to have followed her. _Now, where am I?_ She had lost all sense of direction in the dark. The meager starlight let her make out the jagged outline of large rock piles. She carefully picked her way closer, minding the potentially treacherous footing in the dark. She found one of the boulders had a shallow cave cut into one side. She stood in front of the opening, considering. _A potential place to hide? Or have I already run too far to find my way back?_

The bundle in her arms whined. Jasmine pulled the cloth back from the baby’s face. The baby looked unharmed, thankfully. Large dark eyes above plump cheeks blinked up at her. The tiniest wisps of red hair peeked out from the edges of the blanket. “Uh, hello, little one.”

The baby scrunched up its face and let out a piercing wail.

“No! Oh, please don’t do that!” She held the baby against her shoulder and tried an awkward little bouncing motion.

The baby cried harder.

Jasmine switched to holding the baby horizontally in her arms and tried a gentle swinging motion. “Shh shh,” she whispered.

The baby’s cries slowly petered out. Jasmine slumped forward in relief, internally thanking Hylia for her protection. The noise could have easily alerted someone to their location.

As if to mock her, the black bokoblin stumbled into view around the cave, snorting and stamping its feet in rage.

“Oh, come on!” Jasmine yelled, eyes flicking skyward where the goddess was undoubtedly looking down and laughing at her. “What else ya gonna throw at me tonight?!”

The boko grinned and widened its stance, ready to charge. Then it paused, one large bat-like ear twitching as it caught a distant sound.  
Jasmine could hear it now too. It was a shrill and frantic beeping, growing louder each second. She caught sight of a blue glow over the bokoblin’s shoulder. A mechanical monstrosity known as a guardian was scuttling closer to them at a frightening pace. A red line blared out in the darkness, aimed toward both of them.

“I’m so sorry I asked,” Jasmine whispered as she clutched the baby more tightly. She had spent so much of this evening in gut-wrenching fear she hoped her body would be numbed to it by now. Her legs shook violently underneath her. _Apparently not._

The beeping grew louder until it was ringing in her ears. Despite the trembling in her legs, she held steady, watching the guardian draw closer. The bokoblin reluctantly turned away from his prey, the look of annoyance on his face dropping into one of dumbfounded surprise as he turned to face the noise.

As soon as the boko had turned its gaze from her, Jasmine darted away, the alien sound screaming out behind her. The red line never wavered, staying trained on the unfortunate bokoblin. A moment later the area behind Jasmine exploded in a burst of fire and destruction.

By the time the guardian began a new scan of its surroundings, the Hylian (and the bundle tucked securely in her arms) had disappeared into the black shadows of the nearby forest.  
  
\- - -

After disposing of the troop of bokos that had harassed the pair of travelers, Wild had done what he could to patch them up. The man had soon regained consciousness and Wild had immediately offered him his last elixir to get the man back on his feet. It took some insistence, but the man finally drank it, thanking him profusely afterward. The woman was grateful as well but there was fevered anxiety in her features that wouldn’t go away. She refused to let him check her injured leg either. The man, her husband, had done his best to comfort her but Wild could see the despair hanging over the man as well. 

It was no wonder when the fate of their child was unknown. The woman had, of course, told him immediately of the missing baby as soon as the last creature had fallen to his sword. But by the time Wild made it up the hill to the overturned cart, there was nothing to find but scattered goods and troubling smears of blood in the grass. Wild had elected to not mention the blood, only telling the couple that the child was nowhere to be found.

A short distance away he found both bootprints and wolf tracks in the mud around the cart. That, at least, gave him hope. He remembered seeing a third Hylian, a young woman with dark hair, with the couple when he had found them. The wife had explained that she had asked the stranger for help but lost sight of her in the darkness. Wild sighed in frustration. Too many travelers on the road were ruled by fear, even after the defeat of Calamity Ganon. _But truly,_ he thought, _I can’t blame them. I pushed past my fear because I had to. Because I had a task that no one else could complete for me._ He wished there was no need for bravery (or at least well-armed travelers) on the road. In fact, he wished he could be there to help them all and make up for all the years of suffering his absence had caused. _If I could just clear out all these monsters permanently, I could make the roads safe again._ But he was only one man. One that was spread too thin already. 

He pushed back the tiredness he felt and prepared to search for the missing girl as well. Who knew where her fear had pushed her to hide? _Twi, I could really use that wolf nose of yours right now._

And with that uncanny ability to always know when Wild needed him, the large wolf immediately appeared over the ridge. Wild smiled in relief as the wolf caught his eye, nodded, then slipped into the cover of the trees. 

A moment later, a young woman cautiously crept over the same ridge, the tension in her stature melting away as soon as she saw the three Hylians by the cart. She laughed, her voice shaky with relief as she ran up to them. She dropped to one knee by the couple. The carefully wrapped bundle in her arms was passed over to the overjoyed parents, who cried out as they were reunited with their baby. They couldn’t stop thanking the girl for what she had done. 

The young woman laughed again and shook her head. “I wish I could have done more. I- well I didn’t want to just leave you all to… you know. But-”

The mother grabbed the girl’s hand. “You did wonderfully. So much more than I would have ever expected from a stranger. But I don’t think you could ever be a stranger to us now! Please, what’s your name?”

“It’s Jasmine. But really now, I was so weak against those monsters. I had no way to help you. If this archer,” she nodded toward Wild, “hadn’t shown up when he did-”

“Well, then,” Wild cut in before the couple could start in on their thanks to him again. “That’s easy enough to take care of.” He pulled out his sheikah slate. “Know your way around any weapons?”

“Uh. My brother uses a spear. So he taught me some… just the basics really,” Jasmine answered, confusion clear on her face.

“A-ha!” Wild snatched the silver spear that materialized in front of him and held it out to her.

She stared at it, wide-eyed. “Wait. You’re just giving it to me? I- I can’t take this!”

“Course you can. It’s Zora made so it’s quite a bit lighter than it looks.”

“That’s not what I meant.” She shook her head. “I’m sure it was expensive.”

Wild only smiled and pushed in into her hands. 

Jasmine reluctantly took it. Her eyes traced the elegant spear, ending at the finely crafted crescent blade at the top. “I don’t know how to use this fully.”

“But you want to learn, right?”

She sighed, then finally relented, giving Wild a bashful smile. “Yes.”

“Wild,” A new voice cut into the conversation. “Please don’t tell me you’re jus’ handing out weapons to random travelers.” 

Wild felt the tension he had been subconsciously holding relax as Twilight walked up to join them. He knew Twilight could handle himself, but he liked having his fellow heroes in his line of sight after a battle. Especially in his own Hyrule, where he most keenly felt the weight of his responsibility to protect. “I was going to tell her to find someone to train with!” He turned back to Jasmine and gestured toward Twilight. “This is my friend. We’ve been traveling together for a while.”

She nodded politely. “You didn’t get caught by those monsters as well?”

Twilight shook his head, his face carefully neutral. “We must a’ got separated.”

“Well, I’m glad you didn’t get hurt,” Jasmine said. “It’s a miracle you didn’t run into any bokoblins or even that wolf!”

Wild’s eyebrows rose almost comically high. “A wolf, you say?”

She nodded. “Biggest one I’ve ever seen. I think it was following me in the woods earlier. I’d gotten pretty turned around in the dark but thankfully trying to stay away from that wolf happened to lead me back to you all. I’d keep an eye out for it.”

Wild grinned at Twilight. “Wow! That was super lucky!”

Twilight ignored him. He turned to help the couple get to their feet and offered to escort them to the nearby Tarry Town.

“Thank you,” the man responded. “We’ll definitely feel safer with the two of you protecting us.”

“Uh, you know he’s referring to the two of us, Twi!” Wild called out as they set off down the road, jerking his thumb to indicate himself and Jasmine. 

“What?!” she squawked.

Wild shrugged as Twilight mock-glared at him. The bokos had been taken care of and no one had died! He was allowed a bit of mischief. “It’s not our fault that we did all the rescue work while you just got lost in the woods.”

Jasmine laughed. “Oh, don’t look at me! I don’t do well under pressure.”

Twilight snorted before mumbling, “I highly doubt that.”

Wild shot him a questioning look.

“I just have the feeling she’s got a good sense of timing,” Twilight said, an all-too innocent look on his face.

“You see?” Wild turned back to Jasmine. “The roads will be safer with you on them.”

“Look,” she sighed, her expression turning serious. “I know you’re just joking around… but you make it sound like I’m going to be taking out monsters like the legendary hero or something! I’m just one person.”

Wild’s demeanor closed off abruptly. “I suppose if the hero was doing his job, you wouldn’t have had to deal with these monsters in the first place.”

Jasmine’s expression turned sour. “He’s done plenty. More than any one person’s ever done for us before.”

Wild just hummed. “Still. He should do more to help.” He could almost feel Twilight’s burning glare aimed at the back of his head. Still, he resisted the urge to squirm. It was the truth, even if Twilight didn’t like it.

“No,” Jasmine said. “His fight was up at the castle. Out here,” she gestured to encompass the wilderness around them, “we should do more to help him, I think.”

Twilight passed them by on the road, shoulder knocking into Wild’s. Wild caught his eye and instantly regretted it. Twilight looked far too smug now. It was an old argument between the two of them: Wild believed in trying to pay for his past mistakes; Twilight argued that the debt had long since been repaid, if there ever really was a debt in the first place.

Fine, fine. He would give the bull-headed Hero of Twilight this one. He glanced over their little group, a grateful father, a resilient mother, a clueless child, two idiot heroes, and one determined gal.

“Well,” Wild reluctantly said, “I suppose it wouldn’t hurt. If more people thought as you do, if they looked out for each other… that hero’s job would be a lot easier.”

**Author's Note:**

> Krust created [ this cool bit of animation ](https://www.instagram.com/p/CCwBsNDnRgm/) and I love it so much! I thought, "that'll be such a fun scene to write!" And it was! But then the story around it kept growing. And I couldn't stop writing. I'm not quite satisfied with the ending, but I've kept Krust waiting long enough. ;)  
> 
> 
> Also, why did I start the fic from Twilight's POV, switch to Jasmine's POV, then end with Wild's POV? Who knows? I hope it's not too jarring! Regardless, I had SO MUCH FUN writing this. Thank you so much, Krust, for sharing your art with us!  
> 
> 
> [I was so very very close to choosing your "Thinking about his sun" artwork featuring Sky. But you didn't list Sky as one of your favs, so you got Bokos and a Baby. ;) ]


End file.
